Women of Wonder – 50 Years of Title IX: Palmer’s Aleisha (Latimer) Heier broke national records
Aleisha (Latimer) Heier is easily one of the fastest humans to race out of Colorado Springs.
“This is cool," she said while walking the relatively newly renovated track at Gerry Berry Stadium.
”I can remember many of 200s ... many 100s ... anytime I see a 400 ... my stomach turns," she laughed.
Heier has countless memories at the D11 track. It's where she cemented herself as one of the fastest high school runners in the country when she graduated from Palmer in 1997.
In fact, in her senior year, she finished 3rd in the 60 meters at the U.S. Nationals.
“I had Gail Devers on one side, Gwen Torrence on the other side, and Holli Hyche, who was the NCAA champion that year, was on the other side," Heier laughed.
But Heier's pace was no laughing matter. She qualified for the world championships in Paris following that race – proving her pure, natural talent.
“But you didn’t see that I practiced six days a week. I drove up to Denver every single day after school. I practiced for two or three hours, came home, did my homework, all that stuff," said Heier.
Her gift, combined with her tenacity, built an all-time resume.
She set national high school records in the 50 meters (6.32) and 60 meters (7.22) and won two 5A state titles in the 100 and 200 meters, setting a new state record in the 100 in the process (11.37). She was named the U.S. High School Indoor athlete of the year by one publication and was a gold medalist in the 400-meter relay and silver medalist in the 100 meters at the ’97 Pan-American Junior Championships in Cuba.
“As a high schooler to be able to do and achieve all that, I look back now and think ‘that was crazy,'" she said.
Heier is grateful for her running career and for what the sport, and Title IX, continues to provide young women in 2022.
“You almost don’t think about it. It’s like girls and womens sports - it’s an automatic thing. So I’m just thankful it is what it is today," said Heier.
Aleisha went on to become an All-American runner at the University of Illinois. She is now a PE teacher at Liberty high school and coaches her daughter now.
A really neat side note: Aleisha’s father, Edward Latimer, ran a track club, called the Colorado Springs Striders, of which she was part of when she was a teenager. Her daughter now runs it now as well.
This summer is the 50th anniversary of Title Nine. The law prohibited sex-based discrimination in schools, guaranteeing a level playing field for female athletics for the first time in our nation’s history.
To celebrate the anniversary, KRDO’s Josh Helmuth is showcasing nine of the most remarkable female athletes to come out of southern Colorado.
